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Area of Expertise: International Education, International Service-Learning, Civic Engagement

Bio: Erin Barnhart, Ph.D. serves as Graduate Program Director with IPSL for their Master of Arts in International Development and Service program at Concordia University. In addition, she is the Founder & President of Effective Altruism, LLC and serves on the Board of Directors for the Building Bridges Coalition and Volunteer Positive, on the advisory board for the American Gap Association, as a member of the Oregon Committee on Volunteerism, and as an adjunct professor at the University of Oregon and Concordia University. A former Fulbright Scholarship recipient and AmeriCorps*NCCC alum, Dr. Barnhart earned her Ph.D. in Urban Studies from Portland State University in 2012, having completed her dissertation research on global host organizations of international volunteers. She also holds a Bachelor of Arts in Geography, a Master of Public Administration, and a Graduate Certificate in Not-for-Profit Management, all from the University of Oregon.

AmeriCorps Service: AmeriCorps NCCC, Central Region, 1997-1998

Mona Mowafi

Current Position: Co-founder/President, RISE Egypt

Area of Expertise: Social Enterprise, Economic Empowerment

Bio:Mona Mowafi is co-founder and president of RISE Egypt, an organization
that is mobilizing the global Egyptian diaspora and its networks to invest in
social entrepreneurship for development in Egypt. Its mission is to find,
support, and scale social enterprises that create positive social impact, are
financially sustainable, and address policy challenges of national significance.
Mona was also co-founder and president of Egypt NEGMA from 2011-2013, and was
Chair of its 1st Annual NEGMA Conference and Impact Egypt! Social Innovation
Competition. She was awarded a global health research award for emerging
leaders by the Global Health Council in 2011, and was recently awarded the
Judith O’Connor Award for emerging nonprofit leaders from Boardsource. She has
published numerous peer-reviewed articles and book chapters in her field, and
has frequently lectured on the role of people-driven development in Egypt since
the January 2011 revolution. Mona holds a doctorate in Social Epidemiology from
the Harvard School of Public Health, where she currently remains affiliated as
a Research Fellow.

Michael Gale

Current Position: Senior Program Manager, Global Giving

Area of Expertise: International Philanthropy

Bio:Michael is the Senior Program Manager at GlobalGiving, a
charity fundraising web site that gives social entrepreneurs and
non-profits from anywhere in the world a chance to raise the money that
they need to improve their communities. Prior to joining GlobalGiving, Michael
served as Program Officer for Latin America and the Caribbean at the Global
Fund for Children, where he identified and supported innovative grassroots
organizations throughout the region. He has also managed an immigration loan
program in Texas, worked as an NGO consultant in Ecuador, conducted research on
migration and Quechua language use in Peru, and studied in Chile and Spain.
Michael earned bachelor's degrees in international studies and Spanish studies
from American University and his master's degree in Latin American studies from
the University of Texas at Austin. Michael was an AmeriCorps member in
Washington, DC in 2003-2004.

Bio: Oge is a Program Manager at the National Democratic Institute (NDI) where she oversees the design and implementation of the Institute's democracy strengthening country-specific and sub-regional programs across Southern Africa. Prior to joining NDI, she worked with the National Endowment for Democracy where she oversaw strategy and civil society programs in Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Ghana, and Cameroon. She has consulted for the World Bank Institute conducting research on the oversight functions of African legislatures, observed elections with the Carter Center, and coordinated refugee youth resettlement programs with the International Rescue Committee. She received her MA in International Development from Brandeis University's Heller School of Social Policy and Management, and BA in International and Area Studies from the University of Oklahoma.

Bio: Leah Hoffman is currently a graduate student at Brandeis University, enrolled in the Sustainable International Development MA program. Prior to her time at Brandeis, she worked as the International Education Analyst for ILC Africa, a small development consulting firm based in Ghana, West Africa, where she assisted West African high school and college students in securing collegiate and graduate admissions opportunities to the United States. As part of the undergraduate and graduate admissions program, Leah managed exam preparation courses and collaborated with other West Africa-based international education organizations in the region to develop a deeper understanding of education and admissions best practices in the US. Prior to her experience in West Africa, Leah worked at New York Cares, managing non-profit partnerships and an AmeriCorps technology program in the New York City area. A proud Wisconsinite, Leah graduated with a degree in Urban Studies from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 2009.

AmeriCorps Service:City Year New York, ‘10-‘11

Ryan Sarafolean

Current Position: Founder/Executive Director, KGSA Foundation

Area of Expertise: International Development, Career Development

Bio: Ryan Sarafolean is a community organizer, educator, and proud
graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison where he studied issues of
privilege, power, and identity in and outside of the classroom. For four
years he worked at an after school program that served the at-risk and homeless
community in Madison and implemented a structured, educational program focused
around youth empowerment. Upon graduation, Ryan became an AmeriCorps
Promise Fellow with Project SUCCESS, a nonprofit organization in
Minneapolis. There, Ryan worked as the Civic Engagement Coordinator,
working with middle school and high school youth to address local issues
including gun violence.
Ryan now serves as the Founder and Executive Director of the KGSA Foundation, a
nonprofit organization that reduces poverty and gender inequalities in the Kibera
slum of Nairobi, Kenya. KGSA Foundation works closely with local leaders
in Kibera to provide free secondary education, artistic programming, and
athletic opportunities to over 130 young women each year. The core of the
Foundation’s work is to build and harness the unique strength of women to lead
their communities out of poverty.

AmeriCorps Service: Promise Fellow

Loren Hyatt

Current Position: Program Associate, Lutheran World Relief

Area of Expertise: International Disaster Relief

Bio: Loren Hyatt is currently a consultant and researches international development and disaster issues in Asia and the middle East. Formerly, she worked in emergency response programming and communications for Lutheran World Relief (LWR) in Baltimore, MD. Loren studied international development and humanitarian emergencies at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service where she received her master's degree. During her time at Georgetown, she completed graduate internships with World Vision, the Ponheary Ly Foundation in Cambodia and the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund. Prior to working at LWR, Loren was a Senior Information Officer at USAID's Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance. Loren also served in the Office of Public Liaison at the White House. Loren is a native of South Carolina and graduate of Wofford College where she studied Government and Spanish.

AmeriCorps Service: Site Coordinator at Project Transformation

Nicholas Smith

Current Position: Regional Coordinator, Carter Center

Area of Expertise: International Development

Bio: Nicholas is the Senior Technical
Advisor/Regional Coordinator at The Carter Center. Prior to this position,
Nicholas served as the Technical Advisor to the South Sudan Guinea Worm Eradication
Program with The Carter Center. He has also created computer simulations in
Spanish for Oracle PeopleSoft financial and project management software
database systems used to train CARE country office staff in order to increase
operations, project, and user productivity. Nicholas has also served as the
Municipal Development Advisor for Peace Corps Guatemala and the Case Manager
for the Hurricane Katrina Evacuee Assistance Program. Nicholas earned bachelor's
degrees in international studies and Spanish studies from West Virginia
University and his master's degree in International Affairs and Cities and
Urbanization studies from New School University.

AmeriCorps Service: Service and Team Leader for Hands On Atlanta and Return
Peace Corps Volunteer

Zishan Jiwani

Current Position: Program Associate, One Acre Fund

Area of Expertise: Logistics, Agriculture, Customer Service, WASH

Bio:Zishan serves as a Program Associate for One Acre Fund
where he currently manages the Logistics & Customer Service Teams for the
Kenya program. He was previously an Indicorps fellow where he developed and
executed a latrine construction project in rural India. He has also worked with
NPR as an editorial assistant & as an AmeriCorps Volunteer in New York
City.

AmeriCorps Service: City Year '11, Brooklyn, NY

Jessica Lane

Current Position: Project Coordinator, IREX

Area of Expertise: International Development and Education, Conflict Resolution, Civil Society Capacity Building

Bio: Jessica Lane has been with IREX since 2012 and currently supports the Community Solutions Program and the Community College Initiative Program. Her work focuses on building the capacity of civil society actors to positively intervene in their communities as well as developing workforce readiness skills among international students. She provides grant management support for both programs, including program implementation, monitoring and evaluation. In addition, Jessica is trained in conflict resolution methods, such as dialogue facilitation. Previously, Jessica served as an AmeriCorps volunteer at the non-profit organization College Forward in Austin, Texas where she focused on access to higher education for first-generation and low income youth through teaching high school courses on college access and providing community trainings. Jessica has studied Arabic and French and has international experience conducting research on civil society activism in Israel. She holds an M.A. in International Peace and Conflict Resolution from American University, where she concentrated her studies on post-conflict peace-building and development, and a B.A. in Communications and Pre-Law from the University of Arizona.

AmeriCorps Service: College Forward, Austin, TX

Crystal Vitagliano

Current Position: Project Assistant, UNDPArea of Expertise: International Development, Career Development

Bio:Crystal graduated from Xavier University in Cincinnati, OH with a BA in English Literature and focus on communications.Her first job after college brought her to the private sector where she worked with Monster Worldwide for 8 years in operational management and event planning.Towards the end of her time at Monster she traveled with Habitat for Humanity to Guatemala and Romania and decided to transition into international development work. In 2011 Crystal joined the Peace Corps and served in Kazakhstan as a Secondary School English Teacher.After the Peace Corps, Crystal enrolled in a Masters of Arts Degree in Sustainable International Development at the Heller School of Social Policy and Management within Brandeis University.During the summers, she worked on two separate AmeriCorps projects, one with the Mass Mentoring Partnership in Boston and the other with the New York Coalition for Hunger in Chicago.As part of her second year for graduate school, Crystal accepted a position to work with the United Nations Development Program as a member of the Equator Initiative team in New York City.Crystal will graduate in May 2014 and is looking to move into a career with a large international organization focused on poverty reduction and sustainable livelihoods.